The state of Wisconsin has a law that has been dubbed the “cocaine mom” law. The idea, in theory, is supposed to protect fetuses from mothers who have drug or alcohol problems and may harm their unborn children. The law contains specific language that the provisions in this law are only supposed to be used in a situation in which a mother may harm her child to a severe degree. In addition to Wisconsin, Minnesota, Oklahoma, and South Dakota have these laws in place, while 20 other states have tried and failed to pass them.
A New York Times article by Erik Eckholm published earlier this week explored the horrifying implications of this law. The editorial focused on the story of a twenty-eight year old woman named Alicia Beltran. Fourteen weeks into her pregnancy she went in for a prenatal checkup. She was honest with her doctor about an addiction to Percoset, a prescription painkiller. She had kicked that addiction a few months before. She had also briefly taken a medication called Suboxone, which is intended to help addicts kick their addictions. It is safe even for pregnant women. She borrowed it from a friend, and did not have a prescription for it, because she could not afford one. But she waned herself off of it a few days before she even went in for pre-natal care.
After explaining her situation to her doctor, she took a urine test that showed only traces of Suboxone, which she had disclosed to her doctor. Later tests showed no drugs in her system. The physician’s assistant she had seen for her check-up report told her that if she wanted to continue to take Suboxine, that she should get a prescription. That decision was backed up by the OBGYN Beltran had also briefly seen at the clinic. Beltran explained that she no longer intended to take the drug, and that a prescription would not be necessary.
The physician’s assistant was concerned about the patient, and reported Beltran. A few days after her check-up appointment, a social worker showed up at her door. For Beltran, that was when the real nightmare began. The social worker said that she needed to restart Suboxine to prevent her from taking any other drugs, or be court-ordered to do so. Beltran explained that she did not want to restart Suboxine, and that she was not at risk for restarting her Percoset addiction. She admits that the social worker upset her deeply, and when she slammed the door, she said something about considering an abortion.
A few days after this incident, a sheriff showed up at Beltran’s door and placed her under arrest. She was brought to court, and the terrified young woman was introduced to a lawyer that had been assigned to her unborn fetus. She asked for a lawyer for herself, but wasn’t given one. She was then remanded to a 78-day stay at a drug addiction facility to treat a problem that, as later urine tests showed, she simply did not have. She reports that she was given an option between the treatment facility and jail.
Now, Beltran is fighting back. She is part of a federal suit that aims to declare the Wisconsin “cocaine mom” unconstitutional. Lynn M. Paltrow, Executive Director of National Advocates for Pregnant Women told the New York times about the ramifications of these types of laws, saying “this is what happens when laws give officials the authority to treat fertilized eggs, embryos and fetuses as if they are already completely separate from the pregnant woman.”
The future of this case in court may have interesting effects on the large and vast fetal personhood argument that has been occurring for the past few years all across the United States. If the Federal Court decides that a woman can be held against her will in the name of protecting a fetus; namely that the life of a fetus supersedes the rights of a mother—that decision could have an important effect on the forward movement of fetal personhood cases nationwide. On the flip-side, if they rule that the law is unconstitutional, that precedent could be used as an argument to block fetal personhood efforts in some states.
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Anneliese Mahoney (@AMahoney8672) is Lead Editor at Law Street and a Connecticut transplant to Washington D.C. She has a Bachelor’s degree in International Affairs from the George Washington University, and a passion for law, politics, and social issues. Contact Anneliese at amahoney@LawStreetMedia.com.
Featured image courtesy of [alenka_getman via Flickr]